


Hard Work Comes With Rewards

by ticklishivories



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Babysitter AU, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-25
Updated: 2013-08-25
Packaged: 2017-12-24 15:41:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/941680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ticklishivories/pseuds/ticklishivories
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Roxy needs to babysit her little sister's best friend. John gets in the way of that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hard Work Comes With Rewards

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as an apology to all the people that read my previous john/roxy fic. John is much luckier this time around (wonk)  
> Hope you enjoy it.

It’s Saturday afternoon and the sun hangs brightly in the sky. White puffy clouds drift across its blue canvas. It is a picturesque day, perfect for hanging out with the girls or a dip in the river. The evening is going to be beautiful, you already know; crisp, cool night air, street lamps to light a romantic walk, and discounts at the pricy family restaurants. The perfect day for the perfect date night.

For you, today will be the day you make it _rain._

Saturday’s are cash cows for babysitters. And you are, in fact, a babysitter, as you drive your six year old sister to her friend’s parent’s house. Prices for a babysitter go up on Saturday, because no one wants to give up their date night and no one wants to be stuck watching a little kid. Even if it’s their own. So you more than willingly offer yourself up. The money goes to paying off your car and the extra is being saved for college funds. You need every last penny. And at this point you can definitely say you won’t be wrist high in debt when you are in your golden years.

“Roxy, I’m hungry,” Rose whines from behind you. It’s such a needy sound it makes you giggle.

“We are almost there baby girl. And when we get there I will make you the best jelly nugget sandwich you ever darn tasted.”

You pull up into the long fancy driveway, your car rolling to a halt in front of their three car garage. For the Maryams you are a cheap alternative to a professional sitter, even though what they will be paying you today is enough to make you start drooling. And you are a family friend to boot. Everyone wins!

Except your boyfriend but he’s gunna have to deal.

You help Rose out of the car and hold her hand as you lead her to the front entrance. Before you even knock Kanaya’s father opens the door and welcomes you inside with a bright smile. Parents love you. Mothers because you are fun and can tame their children. Fathers because you have a sweet ass.

(Not really, but you are positive that is a contributing factor.)

Both parents greet you and wave sweetly down at Rose, who is still a little grumpy from the car ride and hides behind your leg. The two are ready to go already so you usher them out the door with positive reassurances and confirmations about numbers and emergency situations. You got all this shit down. You are the ring master at this freak circus and it is time to get the show on the road!

You find Kanaya napping in front of the tv, curled up at an awkward angle on the floor with her hand still wrapped around the remote. Rose sits down next to her without a word and stares blankly up at the tv. It’s super cute, so you take a picture and send it to your BBFE (best boyfriend eva).

He replies almost instantly.

EB: i can’t believe you are babysitting on a day like this.

TG: bro you know how much i need this cash

TG: just call urself a rainforest cuz tomorrow night im guna release the showers and fertilize ur soil

EB: not sure if i should be excited or disgusted.

TG: dude i am talking about the monies you sick perv <3

EB: yes, i am the sickest. you might need to take me to the hospital!

EB: think i could drop by for a visit?

TG: dont know, i am working and trying 2 b a pro at my job

TG: mackin on my bo would probs get in the way of that

TG: and you are sick 2 soooo....

EB: okay, you are busy with your job and i can respect that.

TG: just wait til the tykes are asleep. i will text u at around 9

EB: thanks rox, you are the best!

TG: i no

EB: <3

Kanaya wakes up about a half hour later and is happy to see you in her quiet, sophisticated smile and greeting. She is so mature for her age, just like Rose. They are such close friends that it makes your heart melt. You make jelly nugget sandwiches, which are just chicken nuggets dipped in jelly with a side of bread. They pick at the food like peeping birds and you lean against the counter, watching them as you chew on a banana. The tv plays a movie that no one is interested in (but you know if you dared to change the channel the screams and waterworks would never stop). John is texting you but you ignore his messages. You already know what they say anyway; either complaining about how bored he is or giving a play by play of the movie he’s watching to keep away his boredom. Usually it’s super cute but right now it’s super annoying.

You call him.

“John. I am a busy busy woman. I know you do not understand how hard it is to be the bread winner but-“

“Please, Roxy. I have a job too.”

“Being your dad’s errand boy at his own shop don’t count. I bet you get loads of slack.”

“False! I actually get paid half the amount a part timer should get. It’s really unfortunate. And I don’t even like the job much.”

“But you don’t need the money as much as I do. Your dad’s car is paid for and you are going to sail through college on scholarships! I will probably end up being a teacher with all this experience working with kids.”

“Rox you are like the smartest person ever. You are going to do something amazing like invent the world’s smartest computer or create a new language. Teaching can be a side job!”

Speaking of kids, the two girls are watching you as they nibble on their food loudly. Grape jelly is smeared all over Rose’s chin, and Kanaya’s face is mostly spotless except for the bit of milk gathered at the corner of her mouth. You say cheese and take a quick picture, then send it to John.

He laughs in your ear. It makes you smile. “Jelly nuggets again? Rose is obsessed with those.”

“Yeah. It’s hard to tell if Kanaya likes them or not, because she will basically eat anything I give her.”

Kanaya perks up when you mention her name. She starts speaking and you have to put down the phone to understand her over John’s rambling.

“Red juice. I like red juice.”

You stare at her, a little confused, John’s tiny voice asking you what’s going on from your hand. And then it hits you.

“Oooh, I get it! You like fruit punch. Awesome choice girl!” And you pour her a glass while you hold the phone between your cheek and your shoulder.

“Chillax guy, she just wanted a drink. No Kanaya. A simple fruit juice, should have guessed. Girl has class! So what was it that was so urgent you had to interrupt my work?”

John talks to you as you clean up the mess from the girl’s plates. They clink and clatter as you wash the crumbs away in the sink, then you pour yourself a glass of water and sit with the girls on the living room couch. A few minutes later and they are talking too loudly for you to hear what John has to say.

“Hey, I’ll have to call you back. Can’t hear a thing over their arguing.”

“Arguing? Why are they arguing?”

“Nah, it’s more like mindless chatter. Kanaya wants to play dress up and Rose wants to...?”

“NO.” Rose shouts over all of you.

“Hahaha! I bet she can’t decide what she wants to do so she’s getting frustrated,” John says happily, and you can imagine him lounging in his room, holding the phone with his right hand and gripping the computer mouse with his left. Hot damn do you want to see him.

“Yeah so I will call you back. Square you.”

“Square you too.” And he hangs up.

The first time you said I square you to each other was about a year ago, and you were too nervous to actually text him ‘I love you’ so you sent him a little heart emoji instead. But John’s phone couldn’t read the symbol and received it as a generic little box. He replied with “I square you too?” and it has stuck ever since.

You both say I love you as well, but you save it for super special occasions. (wonk)

Rose is looking to you with pleading, watery eyes, and Kanaya looks just about ready to give in, so you get off the couch in search of something they both can do. You find it, and return to the couch with a handful of crayons and construction paper. And because you are the BEST sitter, you crouch down with them on the floor and start drawing. Their eyes light up and they get to work.

Of course this form of entertainment only lasts so long. After not even an hour they get bored, and for the rest of the day you cycle from playing dolls to playing house, allowing the girls to dress in your enormous jacket and high heels, getting out child safe paints and coloring Rose’s squiddle doll a deep purple, and even using macaroni to build 2d ginger bread houses. By the end of the day the girls are exhausted, watching the tv in a dazed, sleepy trance. You are not far off from being in their position.

It is 8:30 when you glance at the clock, so you decide it’s time for bed. You gently coax the girls off the couch and guide them to Kanaya’s room where they will share her small twin bed. They let you handle them like rag dolls, even as you strip them of their clothes and help them brush their teeth. You tuck them inside the soft jade colored sheets and they are already half asleep. Rose smiles when you press a quick kiss to her forehead. Kanaya whispers a soft “Goodnight, Roxy” and you kiss the crown of her head. You leave the carpeted room on light padded feet and close the door, leaving it open a crack to let the hallway light in.

And finally, you throw yourself onto the couch and groan, texting your bbfe in all caps, ‘DONE.’

He is knocking on the door in the next fifteen minutes.

“Yo sup.”

“Hey.”

He lets himself in.

“You gots to be quiet cuz the suckers are asleep.” You lead him to the tv room where a documentary for world war two fighter pilots is playing. He sits on the couch, his long limbs splayed out everywhere. You place your head in his lap and close your eyes. You are hella tired.

John brushes his thin fingers through your messy blonde hair. Normally you would snap your teeth at him for messing up your do but you are just too damn tired. But it’s a happy kind of tired. You like your job; it’s fulfilling, like eating an apple instead of the chocolate you crave. John bends down to kiss your nose and you think if you didn’t eat your apples, you would be full of cavities. He is just too darn sweet. Sometimes.

“What time are Kanaya’s parents coming home?” he murmurs. Airplanes hum lowly on the tv.

“’Bout 11:30. Right now it is... 9:00.”

You can hear his smile in the way his breath huffs out between his lips. “Sooooo do you want to watch a movie, or maybe do something else?”

You look up from his lap and meet his shiny blues, and he slowly licks his lips. The move might have been hot had he not ruined it right after by waggling his eyebrows. You pick yourself up from his lap and he whines in disappointment.

“Listen bee effsy, we can’t do nothing that will upset the balance of the midget’s sleeping schedules. And I know for a FACT that you cannot hold back any sounds period. True fax. So tuck back any nasty’s in the furthest corner of your brain because I am closed for business tonight.” You slump against his chest and even though he is rolling his eyes, he wraps his arms around your back and pulls you closer.

“Alright, I got it. But I am going to change the channel and you are not going to stop me.”

“What, German fighter pilots don’t tickle your fancy? And the footage is in color too!”

“Sorry. I get enough of history at school. Maybe if it was about biochemical warfare instead?”

“But you love airplanes!”

“Sure, they are great to be in, but not so great to watch.” You feel him exhale deeply as he flicks through the channels. Eventually he finds something and sticks with it, but you don’t bother to look to see what he chose. He doesn’t seem very interested in it either, and keeps his eyes locked on yours.

The house is quiet. You can only hear his breath as it sighs gently through his nose. It ghosts over your cheeks and your eye lashes flutter. You are tired, and you know he can see that in the lines under your eyes. But he kisses your lips and pulls back an inch, asking you in the subtle furrow of his brow if that is okay. You answer by closing in on his mouth. Because tired or not you are always up for make outs.

He doesn’t stop smiling, and you can’t stop smiling either as you kiss again and again, your eyes slipping closed and the world gradually slowing down. The children in their beds are forgotten, and the parents’ arrival only two hours away seems a lifetime from now. His hands rest on the dip of your waist and his head tilts the tiniest bit to the right, and you sigh, and allow him to pull you down with him to lie on the couch.

His chest is warm as you press on top of it, your hands trapped between your bodies as his bigger and rougher ones slide slowly up and down your back. It’s soothing and lulls the movement of your lips into a sleepy rhythm, slow like the drip of a faucet or the thumps of his heart. You lose track of time, and things start to burn, where his skin touches your arms and slips down to tease the beginnings of your skirt and your fingers scrape down his chest. You are sighing his name, pressing closer, your teeth grazing on his upper lip and his tongue hot like molasses in your mouth. Everything is warm and wet, and too fast, and you break away to catch your breath. John’s lips continue to kiss across your jaw and to your ear, whispering your name and saying how sexy you are and how much he wants you. You smile and think, yeah, it wouldn’t be so bad to get carried away, you have a couple of hours before the parents get home and that is plenty of enough time to do some other **ohMY GOD KANAYA IS AWAKE.**

All the warmth in your body is doused cold and you freeze as you stare at her. She is standing next to you, blinking slowly and holding Rose’s hand whose eyes are completely shut and swollen. John stops reluctantly, looking up at you and asking with a gravelly voice what’s up. His eyes follow your line of sight and when he spots the two girls in front of you, he yelps, literally yelps and scrambles to sit up and push away from you. He combs his hair through and straightens his clothes, but you could care less about him right now. Oh my God you are so embarrassed as you stare at their pudgy little faces.

“What’s wrong, Kanaya? Are you thirsty?”

She shakes her head slowly and glances at Rose. “Rose had a nightmare. It was loud.”

You nod and realize upon closer inspection that Rose has tear streaks on her face. She must have accidently kicked Kanaya in her sleep. You should have seen this coming, Rose is a violent sleeper regardless of the dreams she has. You sigh and crouch down in front of Rose, and pull her into your chest. She accepts you without hesitating and you lift her carefully off the ground as she wraps her legs around your waist. She makes a muffled “mmf,” and you take her back to the bedroom.

“John,” you call out softly. “Can you take Kanaya and bring her to the bedroom?”

He looks lost, standing there with the other child in the living room, but he listens to you and offers a hand out to Kanaya. Instead her hands reach out to him and he realizes with slight dread what she wants. Shyly he bends down and picks her up into his arms. He follows you into the bedroom and waits until you tuck Rose back into the sheets. You help him lay down Kanaya and he helps you tuck her in. John leaves to wait outside the room, leaning against the doorframe in a way that reminds you of his dad. You stay back to comfort Rose.

“Remember what I told you about your squiddle?”

She nods. She clutches it in her hands tightly.

“It has special powers if you hold it.”

“Yes.”

“If you hold it, it will protect you from all the monsters! Even the ones in your dreams. Nothing can hurt you if you hold him.”

You lean down to nuzzle her nose and whisper. “And I am right outside of this room. I will be here to fight all the monsters away. Because I am the strongest, biggest big sister out there. You are safe. I am here.”

Her eyes have closed again, and you watch as the tension in her body slowly unwinds. Kanaya is watching you, but eventually she curls into Rose’s back and shuts her eyes.  Your hand caresses Rose’s cheek, catching the stray tears, and finally, her breath evens out and her body stills. Kanaya follows right after her and breathes softly into Rose’s neck. 

You pick yourself up off the ground and make your way over to where John is standing. You fall into his arms and he holds you.

“That was pretty awesome,” he whispers.

“It was nothin’. Rose and Kanaya are the easiest to babysit, you should see some of my wilder ones.” You look up at him, your eyes dancing.

He smiles softly. “Are you referring to me?”

“What if I am?”

His lips press to the top of your head and he keeps you there. “Then I guess you are just stuck with me. Doomed to babysit a grown man forever.”

You smile into his chest. “It’s not as bad as it seems. At least you know your way around a toilet.”

He laughs, though it’s more of a quiet puff of air. The two of you sway gently back and forth in the dark room, together and at peace.

“Love you,” you say.

“Love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> john/roxy is so easy for me to write. i wonder why that is....  
> anyway afterwards you can guess that john had to lad scramble out of that house fast before the parents came home. roxy got her moola and made it rain the next night. happy endings all around


End file.
